Fast-track request for approved Port Perry development turned down; wetlands concerns still linger

Opponents of a 600-unit development proposal on the shores of Lake Scugog that could “devastate” the nearby wetlands and threaten the overall health of the lake can finally take a breath a week after a request for a Minister’s Zoning Order (MZO) request to fast-track the process was turned down by Scugog Council.

Five delegations on behalf of developer Avenu Properties – including one from Special Projects Director David Medhurst – that would have provided “new information” on the project were withdrawn from tonight’s Council agenda.

Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation Chief Kelly LaRocca, who believes the proposal threatens the overall health of the shallow lake, was at a planning committee meeting last week fielding questions from Council and is listed as a delegate on the agenda (along with her fellow First Nations Council members) at tonight’s meeting.

LaRocca was joined in opposition to the proposal September 16 by delegations from environmental groups like Phil Pothen of Environmental Defence and John Brown from Scugog Lakes Stewards and more than a dozen residents.

The public outcry worked, as Council decided to turn down the request for an MZO.

“We are pleased that the support of the MZO application was turned down at the Township Committee hearing,” LaRocca said on social media. “The breadth and scope of the proposed development warrants a lot more scrutiny than what the MZO process permits.”

Scugog Councillor Robert Rock, who does not believe the proposal, which was approved December 23 and will see up to 600 units, including townhouses, some single-family dwellings, several low-rise apartments and an ‘age-in-place’  building to house a couple hundred seniors looking to stay out of long-term care, will “devastate” the wetlands, had asked for a deferral for the MZO request until November but his motion was defeated.

“This project comes with a lengthy list of environmental concerns, including impacts on the wetland and lake ecosystems. If approved, this development will compromise the wetland’s’ ability to provide crucial ecosystem functions like clean water, flood prevention, and critical habitat for a wide range of species,” LaRocca had said in an open letter to Council prior to the September 16 committee meeting. “We strongly believe this is the wrong location for this project. Protecting the wetlands and watersheds of Lake Scugog is critical – we cannot allow these ecosystems to be compromised. Every alternative must be considered, in lieu of developing over wetlands.”

The lack of consultation with First Nation communities – a requirement under the Williams Treaty – is especially alarming, La Rocca added.

“We are disappointed in the lack of meaningful consultation and engagement, by both Avenu Properties and the Township of Scugog with our community. Avenu has refused to fund a third-party review of its proposal and key documents were shared with us only days before an important town council meeting, leaving us with no time to adequately prepare.”

Many in the community shares LaRocca’s concerns, including environmentalist group Scugog Lake Stewards, who believe the development is “cause for concern” about potential impacts on the health of Lake Scugog, which is a shallow, marshy body of water prone to rapid ecological changes.

Ontario Tech University Professor of Environmental Biology Andrea Kirkwood agreed, calling Lake Scugog “a stressed ecosystem.”

“Over the last few decades, urban development has disproportionately impacted water quality in the lake relative to agriculture, which is the dominant land-use in the watershed,” she said. “Urban development at the scale proposed by Avenu properties would only exacerbate the negative effects of urban development on lake health.”

Scugog Island First Nation has been active on social media in recent weeks in the hope Scugog Council and the developer can find a workable solution to a development that “makes no sense.”

“Now is the time for the developer and the municipality to sit down and meaningfully consult with us on this proposal, for the sake of the wetland, the lake and our relationship.”

Avenu Properties proposal in Port Perry